Taste of the Week. Your Pick!

Taste of the Week. Your Pick!

Trying to break the logjam in the Taste of the Week room. Four beauties to pick from here and, not surprisingly at this time of year, three of them are drinks, two non alcoholic by the way!

A superb ale from 9 White Deer, the new brewery in Ballyvourney.
This is their first beer and has great flavour and just the requisite amount of bitterness.
Well worth a try and I'll be on the lookout for their next beers, which will
include an oatmeal stout! Stag Ban is available at Bradley's, North Main Street, Cork. 

Not a new product but a welcome one these warm days.
This is a superb Lemonade cordial, one of the very best.
Just dilute to taste and take a few minutes out for yourself.
Bought this at the Fresh from West Cork stall in the English Market.

Eating and drinking in this Blueberry Yoghurt from
McCarthy's Natural Dairy. Just shake it up and drink it.
Enjoy. Two euro from The Rocketman in Prince's Street.

Eoin O'Mahony of O'Mahony's in the English Market is one of the
more innovative butchers in Cork, always worth a call. Picked up some of
these Toonsbridge Buffalo Burgers there at the weekend and they are
a treat, great meat enhanced by some herbal magic. Been buying lamb from
O'Mahony's over the past weeks and that too is top notch.

Fenn’s Quay. Keeping it simple. Simply Superb.

Fenn’s Quay. Keeping it simple. Simply Superb.
“Our philosophy is simple, we use only the best produce from the best local suppliers and treat them with care and attention to detail.” That’s the motto used by Kate Lawlor, the Head Chef at Fenn’s Quay. And, after a very enjoyable mid week meal at the city centre restaurant, I can verify that the place lives up to the motto and indeed extends its care and attention to its customers as well.

The overall menu has been trimmed back in recent times. The quantity of dishes available may be down but the quality is as high as ever, maybe even more so. In any event the regular menu is augmented by a tempting selection of specials: a  Mezze Platter, a Fish Platter, Beef Stroganoff with Ballyhoura Mushrooms and Pan-Fried Monkfish with Spinach all featured on the night. And, I’m told that O’Mahony’s Collar of Bacon with Savoy Cabbage, Parsnip Puree and Spiced Walnuts is one of the most popular regular dishes.

As it turned out, we never got past the Early Bird Menu, Three Courses for €23.00. This is terrific value and is available Monday to Saturday 5.00 pm to 7.00 pm. You may also have a glass of wine or beer instead of the starter or dessert.

Amazing colour on my starter: Beetroot & Cork Dry Gin Cured Salmon with Goatsbridge Trout Caviar & Mixed Leaves. Fantastic flavours and textures also. CL also got off to a terrific start with Crozier Blue Cheese Mousse, Roast Butternut Squash & Red Onion with Melba Toast. I reckon Kate has raised the bar here and thrown down a challenge to other local restaurants (and chefs!).

And that challenge, all very friendly, of course, was evident in my mains: O’Mahony’s Feather Blade of Beef with Roast Root Vegetables & Dungarvan Stout Gravy. What a gem of a dish. A few simple ingredients on an uncluttered plate but put together in a simply scrumptious way, a delightful practical illustration of the philosophy of the Fenn’s Quay motto.

And that simplicity of produce (not to mention its provenance and freshness) and presentation was also very much in evidence in CL’s main plate: Grilled plaice, with braised leeks, olive oil crushed potatoes and onion puree.

Simply written. What bit don't you understand? What bit would you not enjoy? It was, of course, aided by the Fenn’s Quay kitchen alchemy, the final result delightfully adding up to more than the sum of its parts. And, this special, even if it were not part of the Early Bird, is really good value at €15.00.

Still had room for dessert and here we went with the spirit of the season and tucked into the Fenn’s Quay Mince Pies with Cream (gorgeous buttery pastry), just one each  mind you as we shared. Drinks (a white Rioja for her, a refreshing Mountain Man Green Bullet ale for me) bought the total bill to €50.00.

Fenn’s Quay is highly recommended for breakfast, lunch and dinner and do watch out for their Christmas meals as well. You won't be disappointed.

Taste of the Week

Taste of the Week

Aged veal steak from O'Mahony Butchers, English Market

The English Market was the source of these gorgeous Aherla Farm veal steaks. O'Mahony Butchers had aged it for 28 days and it was absolutely superb, served with rösti and stir-fried vegetables.  Starter, by the way, was halloumi (below), made with buffalo milk from the Toonsbridge Dairy and bought at the Real Olive Stall. And just to make it a market hat trick, the apples for the dessert (Cinnamon flavoured Apple and Sultana Clafoutis) came from the Midleton Farmers Market. Buy local, fresh and fair. And enjoy!

Nash 19. Always a Winner.

Nash 19. Always a Winner.

Something small caught my attention at lunch in Nash 19 yesterday. A green salad, served as a side dish. The mixed greens, that came from Waterfall Farm, were fresh and bright and absolutely inviting, and turned out to be sweet, crunchy and delicious. Just a side dish. But if Nash 19 give so much attention to this seemingly little detail, you'd reckon that the rest of the menu is well taken care of. And you'd be right.

It is this attention to detail that has seen the ever popular city centre restaurant survive and thrive for over two decades. The sourcing, the cooking, the assembly, the service, is all top notch. Always an enjoyable meal and always an enjoyable visit.

The menu changes daily and takes a wee bit of study as you nibble on their breads with that fabulous olive oil. We got, and accepted, recommendations for the main courses and started with a couple of soups.

The soups come in two sizes and we took the smaller bowl (€3.80) yesterday. I had the Tomato and Bean Soup with Chilli Salsa, a hearty mix of textures and flavours. CL’s Pea and Ham Hock Soup was more subtle but also a beautiful blend. The larger size will cost you €5.75.

They also do some tempting looking sandwiches, all around the tenner mark. Indeed, you may take the Toasty - Chargrilled Chicken, Caramelised Onion and Tipperary Brie Wrap and a cup of soup, all for €10.50.

The mains dishes, including their famous Local Producers Tasting Plate (€14.50), vary from €11.50 to €16.50. CL picked the Simply Grilled Fillets of Plaice, Lemon and Parsley Gremolata, vegetables and potatoes. This was expertly executed and rather expertly polished off as well.

The Aherla Veal Meat Balls, the veal from O'Mahony Butchers in the nearby English Market, were something else. These were served, Tuscan style, on Martelli Pasta, Lemon Parsley and Chanterelle Mushroom Cream, the pasta smooth and richly sauced, the meat pink and tender, and all enhanced by that special salad.

And a sip or two of wine of course. With Rhone Wine Week coming up, I opted for a glass (€6.95) of the Ogier Plan de Dieu, smooth, fruity and with a long finish. The fish went down well with a glass of Tuscany’s “refreshing and refined” Castello di Pomino BIanco (6.95). A couple of excellent coffees rounded off a very pleasant interlude.

On the lookout for a Gluten free Christmas Pudding? Nash 19 have the answer and they tell me they are delighted with the way it turned out. "Outstanding!"

Nash 19 details

• 19 Princes Street
• Cork IRL

Phone	(021) 427 0880
Email	info@nash19.com
Website	http://www.nash19.com

Mon - Fri: 7:30 am - 6:00 pm

Sat: 8:30 am - 4:00 pm

Buying local. Market Meal #5

Buying local. Market Meal #5

Simple salad with Marinated Butter Beans from the Real Olive Company

Haven’t posted a Buying Local post in a while. Just took a break from preaching about buying Irish (only stopped talking about it, mind you, I was still buying) and supporting local producers. This latest post was inspired by some delightful Lamb Merguez Sausages, new from Eoin O’Mahony in the English Market, and by last week’s visit to the makers of Cashel Blue.

Domini Kemp's Cashel Blue Cheese, recipe link below.

 Saturday

Let us start with those chunky sausages. Despite the Merguez name and also a few dollops of harissa, they won’t blow the head off you. We wanted to try the sausage flavour as pure as possible and tried them with a little mashed potato. Really tasty, moderately spiced and full of flavour and a great texture. I’m sure you’ll find lots of use for them, maybe with lentils, maybe with white beans, perhaps sliced lengthways and packed into a roll with salad, maybe in a Spanish Rice recipe such as this one. 

Moved up a few stalls in the market after that and called to the Real Olive Company for some sun dried tomatoes and also a scoop of their marinated butter beans. Got more of the slightly spicy beans than we bargained for so, for a quick lunch, used them with a straightforward salad and a few slices of the Country Baguette by Tom’s Bakery which is sold at ABC in the Market. Easy peasy! And tasty!

Lamb Merguez sausages from O'Mahony's in the English Market

 The sun dried tomatoes had been bought to be part of a terrific Cashel Blue cheese recipe from Domini Kemp and available on the Cashel Blue website http://www.cashelblue.com/official-recipe/puy-lentils-with-sundried-tomatoes-and-cashel-blue/ The other main ingredients are Puy lentils (from Len’s Cereals in Mahon Point Farmers Market) and red onions. And keep a few slices of that Country Baguette handy.

Tom's Country Baguette from the ABC Stall in the Market.

Sunday

On the following day, we had a collection of left-overs and added the butter beans to the Cashel Blue recipe and that gave us quite a plateful at lunch today. Looks like being a good day foodwise as the aromas of garlic and rosemary are now wafting around the house as a shoulder of lamb from Eoin O’Mahony is slow cooking for the Sunday dinner.

Buy local and everyone’s a winner, producers, suppliers and customers. 

Bavette Steak and Graffiti Aubergines

AT THE MARKET

Must say I enjoy my trips around the EnglishMarket . So much to see. Just a selection from a weekend visit in the collage above. Some strange ones, such as the Graffiti Aubergines (top left) and familiar ones such as the Swedes (bottom left).

And while it is fun to look, it is much more satisfying to bring your bags and buy. One man I called to was Eoin at O’MahonyButchers. Have taken a shine to his Italian sausages but also like his bavette steak, now “the most popular cut in the shop, though it was a hard sell at the start”. Tasty, and economical!

The Real Olive Company is a regular stop and there was no exception this time. A wee bag of olives was the number one call but also stocked up with semi-dried tomatoes, a couple of packs of Iberico ham (the pigs feed on acorns) and I also chanced a tin of Portuguese Sardines. Next time, I’ll be going for those Feta Stuffed Sweet Peppers (Bottom right). 

The ABC bread stall is a must visit and quite often, the pick is the Country Baguette by Tom’s Bakery in Kinsale. Quite a healthy choice as it is Sugar Free and Dairy Free. Obviously, I like the texture and taste of it; it keeps longer than most sourdoughs and like most sourdoughs, it toasts up very well (useful to know if it starts to stale!).

Speaking of sourdough, I think Arbutus make the very best around, though some come close, and that and so much more is available at On the Pig’s Back. 

Another foodie treasure trove is the nearby Good Food Shop. They stock the excellent Ummera smoked products and I treated myself to a pack of Smoked Back Rashers. Looking forward to working my way through those!

So, lots to see in the English Market. But don’t forget to bring a couple of sturdy bags! I never do.

O'Mahony Family Butchers in English Market

O’MAHONY BUTCHERS

O’Mahony Butchers can be found at the Grand Parade end of the English Market. Had been alerted that they had good vale in bavette, the type of steak you might come across in French bistros.

The helpful courteous assistant cut five of them for me and they cost eight euro. The equivalent in fish would cost between €12 and €15. They went down very well that evening with four out of five giving them the thumbs up.

"It loves a good raw heat, where you cook it nice and fast, where the flames hit it," says Shannon Gregory, a butcher at Cafe Rouge in Berkeley, which sells Niman Ranch's flap meat in both its meat market and in the restaurant as a plate of bistro-style grilled steak with red wine shallot butter. "Make sure you cut across the grain. Otherwise it's like eating a lot of rubber bands."

Read more, including a good explanation of the bavette, at: http://bit.ly/6R4ayu 

Check out my review of O'Mahony Family Butchers - I am cork - on Qype